I just found this on my RSS feeds just now. Wacam just released a new product: an actual pen that records your pen movements when you draw on paper, creating vector drawings for your sketches which can be transferred to your computer when you get home.

I think the main strength of this device is that you don't have to scan your work to bring it into the computer. So the price tag would probably be okay seeing as how much time it could save you, in particular if you are the type of person that takes sketches directly from a sketchbook and finalizes them often, which for me isn't really the case. My sketchbook is just for ideas. For process I draw on paper that's bigger and easier to scan.

I would be interested in seeing how this device performs once it's released in September though: what the range of the receiver is (i.e. page size), accuracy of line quality, line thickness, etc.

Thanks for posting this when you did, Glen. Looks like we were the first among the industry centric sites to feature the news thanks to you.

AWN has a long article about Wacom's Inkling that they published today.

Looks like it'll be sold for $199 US.

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Wacom's Inkling Captures Pen-On-Paper Drawings

By Rick DeMott August 31, 2011

VANCOUVER, Wash., Aug. 30, 2011 -- Today, Wacom introduces Inkling, a new digital sketch pen that captures a digital likeness of your work while you sketch with its ballpoint tip on any sketchbook or standard piece of paper. Designed for rough concepting and creative brainstorming, Inkling bridges the gap between paper sketching and digital drawing by giving users at the front end of the creative process a way to rough-out ideas with real ink on paper and capture their concepts digitally so that they can be later refined on their computer. Inkling even allows users to create layers in the digital file while sketching on paper in the following creative software applications: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and Autodesk Sketchbook Pro.

Spontaneous and Liberating

Virtually anyone who uses sketching to capture their creative ideas and wants to have their drawings in a digital format to e-mail, archive or further refine on their computer can benefit from Inkling. For example, artists, illustrators, or storyboarders who appreciate the convenience, speed and spontaneity of loosely sketching their ideas on paper could profit from the capabilities of Wacom's Inkling digital sketch pen. In everyday use, a graphic designer could use Inkling to create rough concepts on paper for a new advertising campaign and then review and share these concepts on the computer with colleagues during a brainstorming meeting later that day. The pen and receiver store and recharge in a compact case making it easy to transport inkling between home, office, hotel or any typical workspace.

"Inkling's inspiration comes from a desire to give artistic people the freedom to draw on paper and to provide an easy way to transition the drawings to digital media," said Don Varga, Director of Professional Products at Wacom Technology Services Corp.

Inkling Specifics

The Inkling digital sketch pen is comprised of both hardware and software components. Hardware includes both the pen and a wireless receiver that captures a likeness of the sketch and stores it digitally. The ballpoint pen uses Wacom's pressure sensing technology (1024 levels of sensitivity) to detect how hard the pen is being pressed to the paper while sketching. These pressure variations will appear in the digital version of your drawing. "Through its pressure sensitivity, Inkling captures the varied line weights created by the ink pen," adds Varga.

The receiver can be clipped to the edge of standard paper or sketchbooks and the position can be adjusted for left or right handed users to provide the receiver with an uninterrupted line of sight with the pen tip. When sketching is complete, the receiver is connected to the user's computer via USB to transfer the digital files. Files can be opened with the included Inkling Sketch Manager software to edit, delete or add layers as well as to change formats and transfer the files for adjustment and editing in creative software applications.

Inkling can store thousands of sketches and export layered files directly to Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator (CS3 or newer), as well as Autodesk Sketchbook Pro (2011). Alternatively, files can be saved in JPG, BMP, TIFF, PNG, SVG and PDF formats for use with other applications. According to Varga, "Inkling's support of raster based applications such as Adobe Photoshop, as well as vector based applications such as Adobe Illustrator, will provide users with options for incorporating their preliminary sketches into further developed work."

The Ideal Companion for Intuos and Cintiq

Users of Wacom Intuos pen tablets and Cintiq interactive pen displays gain extra firepower by adding an Inkling to their creative arsenal. "For those working with our professional products, the pen is already their input tool of choice," continued Varga. "Inkling can deliver an immediate ROI to these users by delivering an accelerated and more mobile workflow resulting in digital files that can easily and quickly be transferred to their home or office computer and redrawn using the Intuos or Cintiq pen."

Wacom's vision to bring people and technology closer together through natural interface technologies has made it the world's leading manufacturer of pen tablets, interactive pen displays and digital interface solutions. The advanced technology of Wacom's intuitive input devices has been used to create some of the most exciting digital art, films, special effects, fashions and designs around the world and provides business and home users with the ability to explore digital content creation in a comfortable, natural way. Today, millions of customers use Wacom's cordless, battery-free, pressure-sensitive pen technology to express their creativity.

Another thing that I'm wondering, (well two really) is what if someone runs out of ink? is there little ink cartrages for the physical pen? Also what if someone wants to switch materials from time to time or even doesn't use ball point pen? Is there going to be refills for pencil, blue pencil, colored pencil, etc?

Looks like there's ink refills for the pen from what I see in the container it's stored in. I'm sure that refills would be available from Wacom and it wouldn't be a problem to order them once you ran out of what they initially supply.

I doubt if any other device would work other than the pen they provide. Like using anything else besides the proper stylus on a tablet or a Cintiq.

None of those concerns would prevent most artists who are interested in this from buying it and trying it out including myself. It looks like a fascinating invention. We'll see how it performs once it's made available for purchase.

To underscore the emerging popularity of this device, the promotional video is number two on YouTube's most viewed videos for today. It had a few views when Glen posted this, now it's at 896,773 in just three days.

There's more video available as well. This shows how to set up the device for use.